


Tend to the Flames

by ZeAwesomeBirdie



Category: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: Dancing, M/M, post calamity, pre game
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-30
Updated: 2020-11-30
Packaged: 2021-03-10 03:21:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 945
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27797644
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZeAwesomeBirdie/pseuds/ZeAwesomeBirdie
Summary: There have been many words unsaid for many months now.  But the Calamity is over, it is time to finally explore what could have been.
Relationships: Link/Revali (Legend of Zelda)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 69





	Tend to the Flames

**Author's Note:**

> What do we do when the world it is ending?  
> And time it is halted for friend and for foe?  
> Try to hold on to the time as it passes  
> I’ll tend to the flame; you can worship the ashes  
>  Ashes - The Longest Johns
> 
> This fic was written for Guppy in an exchange on discord. It isn't quite what I initially intended, but it's definitely better this way. I really hope you like it!

Ganon’s resurgence was mighty, shaking the earth beneath their feet and nearly knocking the Princess over. While they tried to ready themselves, there was one last thing for Revali to do; go throw his scarf around the neck of that stupid Hylian knight and try to make him promise to get out of this alive. Then they were running to their Divine Beasts, hoping that Zelda would awaken the Power of the Goddess or whatever was supposed to have happened up on Mount Lanayru.

Near Castletown, Zelda stumbled behind Link, tears already falling hot and fast from her eyes while her right hand glowed faintly. Neither had noticed the glow, the mark of the Goddess upon her hand, not yet at least. Link swore as they headed through the gate; Malice had already begun to shoot from Hyrule Castle into the guardians meant to protect the Kingdom. That was all it took for Zelda to realize she needed to do something, and then she noticed the mark upon her hand.

The bubble of light enveloped Castletown, and eventually all of Hyrule. Across the fields, forests, and mountains, tendrils of Malice writhed in defeat on their way out to destroy all of the good left in the land. Then the blinding lasers of the Divine Beasts blasted at the form that Ganon was beginning to take, and Link raised the Master Sword, felling the beast. And so it was over, and Hyrule was saved.

Zelda collapsed by the fountain, the Triforce fading from her hand. When Link went to her side, she glared at him, but said nothing, instead crying harder. King Rhoam was out of the castle moments later, running toward them. The Champions arrived barely hours later, and Urbosa immediately went to Zelda’s side, reassuring her of the future of the Kingdom.

“You survived,” Revali said to Link; he sounded almost surprised.

Link nodded in response, then creakily said aloud, “We all did.”

“Oh, so  _ now _ you’ll talk?”

Nodding again, Link undid the scarf tied around his neck and held it up to return it. “I love you too.”

“Shut up.” Revali huffed, looking away.

Around the square, Castletown was slowly returning to life. The dark storm clouds that had covered Hyrule when Ganon resurfaced were now gone, and the sun left a cheery impression upon the townsfolk. Despite herself, even Zelda finally began to smile. A few of the knights tasked with protecting Hyrule Castle wandered into the square, looking almost lost in thought. Then someone a street away began playing an accordion, and suddenly the joy of surviving the Calamity had turned into a festival of singing and dancing.

For several minutes, the Champions stood in shock as the townspeople seemed to forget the terror from moments ago. Then Mipha offered a hand to Zelda, and they joined in the dancing. Urbosa muttered a smug comment to Daruk, who laughed, while Revali shook his head at the lack of propriety the princesses were displaying.

Link was by his side a moment later, and shakily asked, “Do you want to dance?”

“Dancing is completely beneath me,” Revali responded, rolling his eyes.

“Go on, have fun you two,” Daruk interrupted, “you both deserve it!”

After glaring back at him, and noting the smirk on Urbosa’s face, Revali sighed. “Alright, come on.”

Neither expected dancing to be as thrilling as it was. For one thing, there was the relief of Ganon being once again eradicated, but there was also the rushed words when the Calamity began, and the comfort of knowing the other survived. The warmth of actually  _ being near  _ someone else in a way that was not for training was almost a heady feeling for both. Even the missed steps and fumbling as they turned to the music were inconsequential.

An entire band was forming in the square, and more townsfolk and soldiers were gathering. If the feeling of fear had not yet left for all, it was starting to dissipate. After a tense moment, Revali pulled Link in a little closer, bringing their faces inches apart. Link’s cheeks flushed; he was altogether unused to being so close to anyone, much less Revali.

“You’re better at this then I thought you would be,” Revali muttered, looking away from the knight.

“Hey!” Link objected. He cleared his throat, trying to remember how to speak clearly. “I grew up as a knight, dancing was a part of that.”

“Hmph. I don’t see why you had any use for such things.”

For a moment, Link said nothing. The music swirled around them, and he could see Urbosa and Daruk grinning like the over-involved parents they tended to be from the side of the square. Then he realized Revali was looking at him with all the intensity of the sun.

“Maybe I wanted to ask you to dance like this someday,” he eventually said. The shock on Revali’s face was worth it.

“You’re entirely too insolent,” the Rito sputtered, but he didn’t pull away. Instead, he dragged Link out of the square and into one of the alleyways.

There were some who noticed their departure, though none spoke of it.

“What are you-” Link started asking before he was wrapped tightly in Revali’s wings.

“Shut up. I didn’t think we’d make it.”

It took Link a moment to register what precisely was happening; the emotion from a normally emotionless Rito was altogether unusual. Then he reached up and hugged him back, and realized that this was rather comfortable, that this would be worth exploring further now that the Calamity was gone. And what else, truly, was worth exploring further, with the Calamity over and soon to be legend?

**Author's Note:**

> I'd like to take a moment to thank the staff of Glens Falls Hospital. Without their assistance, I would have never been able to finish this fic. I would also like to thank the folks at the BotW Writers and Such discord server for setting up this exchange, as finishing this kept me stubborn enough to get to the hospital in the first place.


End file.
